Dragon Education (4)

“Wow, so you got chosen by a dragon~ Lucky you~♡”

There’s zero soul in those words, you little minx.

More than that, I was curious about the reason. Did dragon contractors somehow prefer people with pathetic stats?

“Why do you say I’m a good fit?”

“Do not take offense. Ah… to form a contract with a dragon, it is best if the person has low resistance to magic. That is what makes the contract proceed smoothly.”

“…….”

“Pfft, that’s what she says~?”

So it really was because my stats are garbage.

Among our party members, the only ones without magic resistance traits were… Clara was one, actually. So why choose me?

“What shall the terms of the contract be…?”

The contract terms… I needed to think this through carefully.

I had to forge a contract with no loopholes. There could be no gaps that would let the dragon stab us in the back, just like Freya had warned.

After mulling it over, I opened my mouth.

“The terms are as follows: you ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠will obey any demand the contractor makes without exception. You will take no action without an order. You will not harm me or any of my party members. You will not ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠request aid from any other dragon regarding this matter. The contract cannot be broken unilaterally; it may only be dissolved by mutual agreement between both parties.”

A clause that forced her to obey any demand whatsoever… I did feel a twinge of conscience that she might refuse. But without something this thorough, I could never fully trust a dragon.

Perhaps she understood that, because the dragon didn’t put up much of a fight. She still looked thoroughly displeased, though.

“…Very well. Then what of the contract’s duration?”

“The contract lasts until I die…… no, wait.”

The dragon asked, looking puzzled.

“…You intend to set a separate time limit?”

“Yeah.”

At my words, not only the dragon but the rest of the party tilted their heads. Clara spoke up, sounding like she didn’t quite get it.

“…Why set a time limit? That’s good for the dragon.”

“Well, maybe not.”

“…Huh?”

Leaving Clara’s confusion behind, I told the dragon the duration I had in mind.

“Until the hero slays the Demon King.”

“……Wh-what did you just say? The Demon King!?”

“Don’t like it? Then die.”

“That is far too much! To be bound until the Demon King is defeated—have you taken leave of your senses!?”

I turned to Freya.

“Freya? She says she doesn’t want to live.”

“…Is that so.”

“W-wait, I understand! I understand, so please calm yourselves!!”

I gestured for Freya to hold on a moment and looked back at the dragon.

“You understand?”

“…I heard you perfectly clearly.”

“You can accept those conditions, right? Without a single complaint?”

“Y-yes.”

“If you break even one of the above terms, your dragon heart will burst and you will die.”

“…I understand.”

With a look of pure resignation, the dragon raised a finger and suddenly jammed it into her own mouth. What the hell was she doing, the filthy—

“Gueeek.”

“Hey, what the hell are you doing!?”

Why is she suddenly puking and making a scene?

“What else… I am removing my dragon heart.”

“…?”

“It’s a real dragon heart.”

What the dragon had vomited up was an actual dragon heart. It wasn’t a lump of muscle like a normal creature’s heart, but something that looked like a hard, crimson ore.

“Why did you take that out…?”

“If the dragon heart remains inside the body, a dragon’s superior magic resistance prevents contract magic from taking hold, so I removed it.”

Just casually pulling her own heart out and putting it back in… dragons really were a bizarre species.

“So we just form the contract on this now?”

“Correct. Do you know how to cast contract magic?”

“…No idea.”

“Then why would you propose such—”

“I’ll cast it for you.”

Fortunately, Letisia stepped forward. Come to think of it, she was practically a master of contracts. She had bound not only the four great ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠spirits but even a Spirit King to her service.

“Shall we use the terms you mentioned earlier, Allen?”

“Yeah. Think I left anything out?”

“No. Nothing seems missing. The clause that says ‘you must obey any demand’ covers just about everything.”

“One might call that a clause without a shred of conscience.”

I looked at the dragon.

“What?”

“Ah, no. You must have misheard, sir.”

…I’ll let that slide. Once.

“I’ll begin.”

Letisia began chanting an incantation that was nearly impossible to follow. That wasn’t a regular chant… it sounded like the original language of spellcasting. Something close to what people usually called runic speech.

“Confirming the identities of the contracting parties. Contractor: Allen. Contract thrall: Blue Dragon Caesius.”

Letisia looked at me and the dragon as if expecting a response.

“Yeah.”

“That is correct.”

At that, Letisia’s magic power flowed out and took the form of chains. The two chains bound me and the dragon heart, and Letisia continued the contract.

“This contract shall remain in effect until the hero slays the Demon King. No matter what demand the contractor makes of the thrall, the thrall shall unconditionally carry out the contractor’s orders. The thrall shall take no action without the contractor’s command. The thrall shall not harm the contractor or the contractor’s companions. The thrall shall not request aid from any other dragon regarding this matter.”

Having recited every single demand I had made without omission, Letisia lightly clapped her hands together.

“In exchange for abiding by all of these contract terms, the contractor guarantees the life of the contract thrall.”

“Yeah.”

“By the mutual consent of both parties, from this moment forward the contract shall remain valid until its term is fulfilled. The contract shall not be dissolved midway without mutual agreement between the parties.”

The chains completely bound the dragon heart, while the chain that had bound me shrank ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠and drifted toward my palm.

“Ugh!”

A searing heat flared, and a strange sigil was branded into my palm. Letisia looked at it and spoke.

“It’s finished. That mark proves the contract was successfully formed.”

“…Simpler than I expected.”

“Contracts formed by mutual consent are usually the simple kind.”

If mutual-consent contracts are the easy ones… that means forced contracts exist too, even if they’re harder.

That’s a little terrifying.

Pushing the uneasy thought aside, I looked at the blue dragon Caesius.

Her status showed she was under contract, and my name appeared as the contractor. And a new curse trait had appeared… what was this? Curse of Fanaticism?

While I was still bewildered, the dragon muttered to herself.

“Haa… to think I would end up contracting with a human…”

“If you’ve got a problem with it, we can dissolve the contract and kill you. That thing’s still here.”

The spear Freya had summoned still hadn’t vanished. The dragon flinched hard and scrambled to speak.

“A-ah, no! It is not that I am dissatisfied—I simply never expected things to turn out this way…”

“…You barged into human territory of your own free will and still thought that?”

Without the contract it would have been death. I had no idea where that confidence had even come from.

“Hand over the Dragon Jade now.”

“Ah, very well.”

With the contract complete, she couldn’t refuse an order. The dragon held out the Dragon Jade, and I reached to take it.

“Ugh, damn.”

It was ridiculously heavy. Size wasn’t the only thing massive about it…

“Just carry it yourself. It’s heavy.”

“Ah, understood.”

The blue dragon Caesius picked it up again and spoke.

“Ah… how should I address you, sir?”

“Allen.”

“By name?”

“What, were you planning to call me Master?”

“Would that not be proper? Though I myself would find a name more comfortable…”

“I don’t have a hobby of being called Master by a lizard.”

When I waved her off, Caesius furrowed her brow slightly.

“A lizard? I am a magnificent dragon.”

“Right, a dragon under a slave contract. Unlike free lizards.”

“Ugh…”

I turned to Freya.

“It’s fine now, Freya.”

“…Will you be able to keep her under control, Allen?”

“We’ll find out.”

But to Freya, who still looked uneasy, I whispered.

“If it really looks like it’s not working out, just kill her.”

“…Pardon?”

“Didn’t you hear the clause earlier? The contractor has to guarantee the thrall’s life. I’ll do my best, but…”

I said,

“If my best isn’t enough, well, what can you do.”

“…Allen, have you ever heard of an unfair contract?”

“Oh, I know it well.”

I came from a country overflowing with those unfair contracts, after all.

When I gave a light laugh, Freya looked at me with a faintly dubious expression. I pulled my head away from Freya’s ear and looked at Caesius.

“If you don’t listen, no food.”

“…You need not worry so much. I have no intention of resisting.”

Good enough for me.

“But can you do something about that size?”

“I need only polymorph.”

Oh, polymorph.

That was the ability that let a dragon change into another form.

“Then stay polymorphed for everyday life, and only return to your original form when necessary.”

“Understood.”

Caesius’s magic power rippled. And the massive dragon form vanished without a trace.

“Huh?”

And I found myself a little surprised. It wasn’t just me—the other party members looked like they hadn’t expected this either. Noticing the strange looks we were giving her, Caesius showed open bewilderment.

“…Why are you looking at me like that?”

“No, you…”

“You were a woman…?”

With a name like Caesius, I had naturally assumed she was male…

She had transformed into the form of a beautiful woman.